


Just Another (Bloody) Day at Torchwood

by Knitwritezombie (Missa_G)



Category: Torchwood
Genre: Aliens, M/M, a day in the life, splott
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-09
Updated: 2020-05-09
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:34:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24099715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Missa_G/pseuds/Knitwritezombie
Summary: Aliens seeking asylum land in Splott, creating an interesting (and long) day for the Torchwood crew.
Relationships: Jack Harkness/Ianto Jones
Kudos: 35





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This work was originally published on my livejournal (mfic.livejournal.com) back in 2007 or so.
> 
> The original version of this story has embedded graphics, which I now realize is not accessible. I have formatted this version so where the graphics used to be, there are now block quotes to make the text differentiated from the body of the story. 
> 
> You can find the original version here if you wish to read it that way: https://mfic.livejournal.com/28346.html

Ianto was startled awake by the alarms sounding in Jack's quarters. A quick glance at the bedside clock confirmed what Ianto's internal clock had told him – he'd only been asleep a couple of hours. With a groan and a quick glance around for Jack he rolled out of bed and wrinkled his nose as he shimmied into the previous days' shorts.

He scrambled up the ladder barefoot and unconcerned of his state of undress – it definitely wasn't anything Jack hadn't seen before, and if the alarms were still sounding he was fairly sure he'd have time to not only get the coffee going but shower and dress before the rest of the team arrived.

As expected, Jack was standing stark naked at his desk, bare arse featuring prominently in Ianto's eye line as Jack bent over at his computer, rapidly tabbing through pages. Jack looked over his shoulder and smirked as Ianto stepped off the ladder.

"Nice view," Ianto commented dryly. "Are we going to need coffee, or do I get to go back to sleep?"

"Coffee," Jack answered succinctly. "And I've already called everyone else back in."

"Yes, sir," Ianto responded, smothering a yawn and making his way out of Jack's office to the kitchen to start the coffee brewing, then to Tosh's station to get the hub back online for normal activity.

While the coffee brewed Ianto made his way to the communal showers in the locker room. He could have, he supposed, used Jack's, but when he had glanced up at his boss' office, it was empty, and there was really only so much time before the others arrived. And really, he endured their teasing enough as it was since Jack came back and threw their relationship wide open.

Well, since both times Jack had come back, Ianto supposed.

Before the world had ended, Ianto and Jack had managed to keep their – Ianto wasn't sure how to classify what they'd been doing at that point – pretty quiet. Owen and Gwen had been so wrapped up in their own lives and Tosh was buried in her tech that Ianto figured she wouldn't have noticed the world ending around her if she hadn't actively taken part in it.

When Jack had come back the first time, days after Ianto had managed to convince himself that he wasn't, Ianto hadn’t said anything, just let the comments come and go from Owen, too relieved that Jack was alive and too guilty in the part he'd played in his death to feel anything else.

And then Jack had disappeared, Owen had gotten downright nasty, to the point where Ianto had had to physically leave the hub at one point or risk shooting the doctor again. But days went and eventually they had to start learning to work together again as the days of quiet passed them by and the rift began acting more like normal after weeks of quiet. They'd settled into an easy truce and Ianto eventually, again, convinced himself that Owen was right, that he'd just been a part time shag, and that he was really better off without Captain Harkness anyway.

Six months after he'd gone, Jack was back, and the guilt and relief was back again. Guilt because he'd never apologized or explained to Jack why he'd betrayed him a second time, relief because Jack was back where Ianto could keep an eye on him, so he didn't do anything stupid like place himself in front of a life sucking demon to protect the Earth.

And for the first time, Ianto had realized that he'd loved Jack. He wasn't sure he was in love with him, not in the all encompassing way that he'd felt with Lisa (and he was fairly sure he'd never feel that way again), but he knew he felt deeply enough to want to keep the man safe and enough to know that he felt better with him than without him.

So a few nights after he'd returned, Ianto had ordered Chinese and sat Jack down in the conference room and had it out. That he'd only helped open the rift because he felt like Owen and Gwen and Tosh deserved some happiness in life, and while he didn't believe for a second he was going to get Lisa back, he had thought maybe Owen would get Diane and stop locking himself in with weevils and Gwen would make everything right with Rhys and Tosh would finally make peace with her family (because Ianto knew that Toshiko hadn't seen Mary, but her deceased mother). And that maybe, just maybe opening the rift would help Jack find whatever he was looking for, because above them all he deserved to be happy.

The words had just poured out of Ianto while he stared at his hands, palms flat against the table as he resisted the urge to chew on his thumbnails. He hadn't looked up until he saw Jack's hands over his own and a look of complete understanding on the Captain's face.

Ianto had had the most peaceful night of sleep he'd had in months that night. And was promptly caught out the next morning scrambling up the ladder from Jack's room in the previous days' badly rumpled suit just as Owen arrived, complaining loudly about the absence of coffee.

But it had worked out, Ianto reflected as he pulled on jeans and a jumper from his locker. Gwen and Rhys were working it out after she'd finally come clean about Owen. Tosh had met a nice woman that distracted her just enough to keep her out of the hub for most of a weekend (when she wasn't called back for some emergency or other). Owen was still a prick, but at least he wasn't throwing himself at the weevils anymore.

"Ianto?" Jack's voice carried through the hub, breaking into his musings.

"Here, Jack," Ianto said, emerging from the locker room carrying a pair of trainers and socks.

Jack mocked a pout as he cradled a cup of coffee in his hands. "No suit?"

"It's three in the morning, Jack." Ianto said, as if that could explain everything. They were supposed to be off duty – all of them – for the next twenty-four hours, and Ianto had taken all his suits from the hub to the cleaners the night before and he hadn't had a chance to get to his flat in days.

"And your socks don't match," Jack pointed out.

"Again," Ianto said, slipping into said socks (which were the same color and that's all he really cared about). "It's three am. I've had five hours sleep in the last two days. I don't think I've had a decent meal in at least that long. I'm pretty sure my Bluetooth is permanently attached to my head, and -"

Jack kissed him, effectively cutting him off before he shoved his coffee cup at Ianto with a smirk. "You're grumpy when you don't get to sleep, you know that?"

"You think I'm grumpy, wait till Tosh gets here," Ianto muttered.

"Oh, I think Tosh will be just fine," Jack mused.

Ianto looked at him over the rim of his cup, drinking deeply.

"We've got an incoming ship," Jack said. "Can you get started estimating their landing site and ETA?"

Ianto nodded. "Let me just get a refill." He gestured toward the kitchen with his – Jack's – empty mug.

With a smile, Jack handed over another steaming mug, plucking the empty one from Ianto's grasp. "I'll be in my office trying to id our visitors."

Ianto nodded, making his way to Tosh's station to start an analysis on the data being fed to the computer from the hub's central computer. As he pulled up the correct screens he automatically started cataloguing the contents of the kitchen, trying to remember if there was enough of anything stocked to keep them for a few days. Coffee, sure, and he was pretty sure if nothing else there was sandwich stuff in the ice box and peanut butter in the pantry with the energy bars and protein drinks. As he traced the trajectory of the ship that the scanners had picked up, he mentally reviewed the contents of the SUV, remembering that he recently restocked it with a case of the "energy drinks" that Owen liked, a case of plain water, a large bottle of retcon tablets, more energy bars, and a few bars of chocolate.

He reached up to toggle on his earpiece, but found it missing. Ianto was pretty sure he'd fallen asleep with it on. Jack must have taken it off at some point, since he also vaguely recalled falling asleep mostly clothed. He logged into the internal instant messaging system and opened a dialogue to Jack.

> IANTO (0257:33): ETA 1 hour 37 minutes, Captin. Touch down looks to be outside Splott.
> 
>   
> JACK (0257:50): Why is it always Splott?
> 
> IANTO (0257:59): Captain?
> 
> JACK (0258:13): Nevermind. Get the SUV prepped. We're headed out just as soon as the others get here.
> 
> IANTO (0258:25): Yes, sir. And Jack?
> 
> JACK (0258:31): Yes?
> 
> IANTO (0258:40): What did you do with my earpiece?
> 
> JACK (0259:01): Should be downstairs with your watch, cufflinks, and tiepin
> 
> IANTO (0258:08): Thanks
> 
> [IANTO logged off] (0258:11)

Ianto finished off the coffee in his mug and carried it with him up to the kitchen. He transferred the already brewed coffee to a thermos and set another pot percolating as he set off after the keys to the SUV and his missing headset.

He found the headset where Jack said he would, and took the opportunity to put his watch on as well (not that he felt at all that he needed to be reminded of the time). Jack had the keys to the Torchwood vehicle, as usual, and Ianto collected them and headed down to the garage. He hooked the onboard computers into the hub and started transferring the data he'd already worked out and the new feeds coming in from the central computer. He double checked the supplies in the boot and slipped the keys into the ignition without turning over the engine.

The others were stepping through the secure entrance as Ianto emerged from the garage, looking as worn thin as he felt. "Coffee's on in the kitchen," he announced to them as he passed, heading into the tourist booth to retrieve his PDA and put up the "closed for illness" sign.

"Owen, you're supposed to have a medical kit ready to go at all times," Jack was chastising as Ianto secured the hub entrance behind him. "Grab what you've got and let's roll, people." Jack's coat billowed out behind him as spun on his heel.

Ianto dashed up to the kitchen and switched off the coffee, again pouring off what was left into another thermos and grabbing both and following the rest of them out of the hub.

**

"Here we go," Jack said quietly as the ship settled into the middle of the field. The trip out had been fairly quiet with everyone dozing and nursing cups of coffee as Jack sped out toward and through Splott to the location the computers had pinned down as the probable touchdown site.

The five of them were lined up against the SUV as they were buffeted by turbulence, Gwen scrabbling to tuck her hair out of her face, Tosh not even seeming to notice as she focused on her scanners. Ianto wasn't completely sure of his role for this retrieval – but he stood by with the others and watched, PDA in hand.

The ship looked like something out of a science fiction movie – sleek and slender, all smooth lines, nothing like the clunky looking American shuttles Ianto had seen on TV. It was a bronze color, reflecting the lights from farther down the bay. He watched, transfixed, as a hatch lowered and two beings emerged.

In the hazy early morning, the only light from the SUV's headlamps and the lights emerging from the ship, they looked humanoid enough to pass an initial glance. It was only as they approached that subtle differences registered in Ianto's brain. Their skin had a light blue undertone instead of the yellow or pink of humans. They had an additional finger on each hand, and their fingers were longer and looked to be multi-jointed (this was confirmed when they reached out in greeting and their hands fairly rippled). They were dressed casually enough to be regarded as merely eclectic had they been seen walking through Cardiff's shopping district.

"Ianto, with me," Jack muttered as he stepped forward.

Ianto looked aside at Gwen's squeak of protest but complied, matching his step to Jack's gait. They met the aliens in the middle of the field, Ianto coming to a stop just behind and to Jack's left. He thumbed on his PDA, retrieved the stylus, and waited.

The being in front spoke first, in a language Ianto had no hope of beginning to understand, though the cadence felt somehow familiar. Jack turned slightly and flashed a huge grin at Ianto.

"I thought we might have to play charades," he teased before turning around and responding in the same language.

Ianto watched, one eyebrow quirked as a translation spilled out on his PDA, and he suddenly realized where he had heard the language before. Jack had set up a translation program for it late one night, while Ianto had drifted in and out of a fevered sleep from an all-too human strain of flu. He read along, amused, as the translation tracked the conversation.

> _WE ARE ZYTHIAN__   
>    
> 

Ianto read as the text spelled out.

> _WE ARE FLEEING THE WAY THAT HAS CONSUMED OUR SOLAR SYSTEM_
> 
> _WE ARE A PEACEFUL PEOPLE AND WE SEEK ASYLUM UNDER THE SHADOW PROCLAMATION__

Jack responded.

> THIS PLANET HASNT SIGNED THAT AGREEMENT YET.  
>   
> 
> 
> BUT WE MAY BE ABLE TO ACCOMMODATE YOU_
> 
> HOW MANY MORE OF YOU ARE THERE?_
> 
> _SIX HANDFULS ONLY REMAIN__

Ianto had almost missed the translation at the utter sadness in the Zythian's tone. Thirty-six, then, based on their six-fingered hands. He knew of a few abandoned farms in the countryside that could easily accommodate such a small village of people. They wouldn't be completely isolated, but it would be easier than trying to integrate them all into society proper. He quickly changed screens on his PDA and made a note before switching back to watch the rest of the conversation.

Jack replied, sympathy in his voice.

> ARE THEY ALL WITH YOU?_

The Zytthian made a negative sounding noise that didn't translate. Then,

> _ WE HAVE FOUR MORE SHIPS FOLLOWING A ROTATION OR TWO BEHIND US_ _

Jack nodded and turned back to Ianto. When he spoke, his voice was rough and soft, slightly abused from speaking in a language Ianto presumed he hadn't used in quite some time. "Got all that?"

Ianto nodded.

"Get on the horn with UNIT and the PM's office and get them up to date. Get Gwen to call out the local constabulatory and get this area roped off until we can hide the ship. I suppose we got lucky with the timing and we're not likely to need retcon."

"If I may suggest, sir," Ianto started, and continued at Jack's nod. "There are quite a few television shows that film around here. We can make this look like a shoot?"

"You're brilliant." Jack squeezed his forearm. "Make it happen." He waved at Tosh and Owen who were watching curiously from against the SUV. Ianto crossed back toward Gwen, passing them.

"So?" Gwen piped up.

"Intergalactic refugees," Ianto explained briefly. "They're seeking asylum."

For all that she'd seen in her year in Torchwood, Gwen still regularly kept running into new situations. "Really?" Her eyes were wide as she turned back to the field and watched Jack and the Zythians speak, as Owen laid out his kit and Tosh stood by.

"I need you to contact the local constables and see about getting this site roped off," Ianto said gently. Gwen had never really taken orders from him well, even when it was plain they'd filtered through Jack.

Gwen nodded and slipped her headset on.

Ianto slid into the backseat and pulled up their database of contacts. He'd need to get cameras and a crew out here before the sun got too high or they'd never get it pulled off. He scrolled quickly through the database until he got to a familiar name. An independent film maker they'd worked with in the past who cooperated and knew how to keep secrets. Course, it helped that Ianto and Jack had helped him get set up when he'd appeared through the rift over a year ago.

Ianto made that call before UNIT or the PM. He wasn't sure enough caffeine had actually worked it's way into his system yet to deal with the bureaucracy, but Reggie would be easy enough to deal with. A jaw cracking yawn made his point for him as he dialed.

He looked around as he waited for the call to connect to Reggie's voice mail or for the man to pick up. It looked like it was going to be power bars for breakfast. Ianto didn't want to take the SUV to go scout for something warm to eat and strand the rest of the team, and they were too far out for him to make good enough time on foot.

"Jones, what do you want at this evil time of day?" Reggie was as boisterous as ever and Ianto couldn't help but smile.

"I need your help, Reggie." He found one of the thermoses on the floor of the vehicle and poured out the dregs into the plastic lid/cup thing.

Reggie was, Ianto reflected, a man out of time like Jack – like John had been. Only Reggie had adapted. He'd fallen through the rift from the 30th century and he'd actually been fairly thrilled to find himself in the 21st.

Ianto outlined all that Reggie needed to know and had gotten a quick agreement out of the man. After confirming that yes, the lovely Toshiko was on site, Reggie had promised to gather his crew, make a much needed coffee run and be there within an hour.

They might get lucky, Ianto thought as he looked out toward the slowly emerging horizon. Daybreak was more than an hour out, and the weather promised to be misty and gloomy, and hopefully enough to curtail most visitors from what they thought was a television shoot. He watched Tosh, illuminated by their own head lamps and lights from the Zythians' ship, use Jack as interpreter as she did something with her scanner (Ianto made a mental note to get some portable lamps to store in the SUV). Owen looked to be conducting prelim medical exams.

"Just another bloody day at Torchwood," Gwen grumbled as she removed her headset. "Locals will be here in twenty," she said. She gazed around as well.

Ianto knew she wanted to be out with the others, not saddled to the SUV with the tea-boy. "Oi, Gwen," he said to get her attention. "There's power bars and water in the boot. Everyone's probably ready for something to eat by now."

"But –" He almost saw the realization light on her face. "Oh. Right. Thanks." She smiled at him and scampered around to the boot while he opened a secure channel to his counterpart at UNIT.

Sally was a mild mannered and mid-thirty civilian who ran her division of UNIT much like Ianto ran Torchwood Cardiff. They had collaborated many times since Ianto had taken his position in Torchwood 3 – they got along well, even if their bosses sometimes clashed as badly as their organizations.

"This is a secure line. Sally Watson speaking from UNIT mobile command."

" _Bore da_ , Sally," Ianto greeted her in Welsh.

"Ianto Jones, don't you ever sleep?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you that," he switched back to English. "Why are you on the road at five in the morning?"

"For the same reason you're on a secure line from your mobile, I'd wager."

He smiled even though she could see him. Well, if she'd been at her desk with the satellites pointed in the right direction, she might have done. "Can we talk, or do you want to hand this over to our bosses and hope we avert a bureaucratic war of epic proportions?"

Sally laughed. "Go ahead."

Ianto nodded his thanks as Gwen handed him a bottle of water and a power bar. He tossed the bar back over the seat into the boot. He hated the damn things. "We've got a Zythian scout ship parked just outside Splott. They claim to be refugees seeking asylum."

"Peaceful?"

He could hear her typing away. "According to Jack. They say they are a peaceful faction, less than forty of them left, and Jack seems to believe them."

"Okay." Ianto listened to her type for another moment. "We should be there in another – two hours, the driver says. You lot have it under control?"

Ianto snorted. He knew she was teasing. "We're Torchwood, Sally."

She laughed. "My point exactly. See you in a few hours."

Ianto was smiling as he tapped his earpiece to disconnect the call.

'Ianto.' Jack's voice sounded in his ear.

"Sir?" he replied after tapping the Bluetooth back on.

'Did you eat that power bar or hide it under the seat?'

Ianto rolled his eyes. "Neither?" He called up the procedures he needed to connect a secure line to the PM's office. They were used to hearing from him in Jack's stead, even though Owen was officially second in command. Sometimes being a PA had perks.

'Ianto,' Jack sighed.

"Sir?"

'I need you with me on this one' Jack was saying softly. 'It's going to be a long couple of days, and I'm going to need you sharp.'

It was a good as a guilt trip as Ianto was likely to receive. "I'm eating the damn thing now, Jack," he answered, reaching back over the seat and fumbling around until his fingers hit on the foil wrapper.

'Good. Where are we at?'

Ianto could hear Jack tear into his own wrapper over the wireless connection. "UNIT will be here in a couple of hours. Reggie's bringing his crew and should be here any minute now, and you better give Tosh a warning. Though he is bringing coffee, so maybe just ask her to be nice."

Jack laughed. 'The PM?'

"Just getting ready to call her now."

'Good. I'm sending Gwen back up to you to retrieve the locals. Oh, and Ianto -?'

"Sir?"

'Never mind.'

Ianto grinned and shook his head as he disconnected his earpiece yet again and returned to the call procedures on the screen in front of him. He dutifully ate the offensive bar, downing the entire bottle of water after he'd finished, trying to remove the taste from his mouth. Gwen returned to the vehicle as the encryption clicked into place. Just as he was settling back get connected to the proper people within the Prime Minister's government, the locals showed up and Gwen trotted off to get them sorted out.

"Department of Space Affairs, David Tierney speaking, this is a secure line."

"David, Ianto Jones, Torchwood Cardiff."

"Bloody hell, Jones, I was just going to phone you. What've you got going out there?"

"Refugees, sir, it appears," Ianto responded. "They're seeking asylum. Can you get this put in front of the PM ASAP?"

"Is it urgent?"

"No need to wake her, if that's what you're asking," Ianto interpreted the man's reaction. "Right now there's only a pair, but we'll be looking at forty or so by week's end. We, being Torchwood, have some ideas of where we can put them." Well, Ianto had an idea. No one else seemed to have gotten that far yet (Jack probably had but hadn't said anything). "The morning brief will be soon enough."

"Will do. Has UNIT been contacted?"

"They are on their way, and you can tell Ms. Jones that we've already got the recovery and clean up operation underway," Ianto said as one of Reggie's vans pulled up next to the SUV.

"Understood. We can reach you through the regular channels?"

"Of course."

"Alright. Thanks for the heads up."

"Anytime." Ianto broke the connection as Reggie appeared bright eyed and smiling as always in the open door of the SUV. Behind him he could see Reggie's crew spilling out of a couple other vans and cars and picking their way through the field to begin setting up for the day.

"Ianto!"

"Reggie," Ianto nodded and slid out of the van only to be enveloped in a huge bear hug. Reggie was taller than Ianto, broader than Jack, and had a strange affinity for brightly coloured and patterned shirts. The one he'd selected that day was a garish affair of pinks reds and purples over a pair of beige trousers and sandals in a blatant disregard to the weather. Ianto rather thought he wouldn't look out of place in California or some other place well regarded for being sunny.

Ianto stumbled a little as he was released.

"Where's the Captain and the delectable Ms. Sato?" Reggie asked with a wink. He'd developed quite a fondness for Tosh.

Ianto nodded toward the ship. "Come on."

Reggie handed over a large paper cup and Ianto wrapped his hands around it, thankful for the warmth as well as the caffeine lurking within. "Thanks," he said sincerely, earning himself a manly clap on the back that nearly sent him stumbling.

"What did you tell your crew?" he asked as he watched them buzz around.

"That I got lucky and knew that some other programme was supposed to be using the set for something but decided the weather was off or some rubbish," Reggie said cheerfully. "No worries."

Ianto nodded as he took a long pull from the coffee. So long as no one got too adventurous and tried to get inside the ship, they'd probably pull it off. As it was, Ianto figured someone from Torchwood (probably him) would be on scene most of the day anyway and would be able to discourage such behavior.

"Captain Harkness!" Reggie bellowed as they drew closer to where the Captain was standing with Tosh

"Reggie!" Jack returned the greeting just as enthusiastically, and Ianto smirked as Jack was folded into a bear hug as well.

"And the luscious Ms. Sato," Reggie reached for her hand and kissed her knuckles suavely. Ianto had wisely not mentioned Tosh's girlfriend for fear of Reggie refusing outright to help them or in fear he'd want to track her down and invite her along. Ianto wasn't sure which of those were the worse outcome. "I have something special for you, my dear."

Ianto watched Tosh's skeptical look turn to one of complete pleasure as the 30th century man produced a large cardboard cup. "For you," Reggie said, handing it over. "Triple shot soy no foam latte."

Tosh had to stretch up on tiptoe, and even then Reggie had to bend slightly for her to kiss him on the cheek.

"Oi, Reggie!" Owen hollered. "Got one of those for me?"

"Of course." Reggie winked down at Tosh and strode over to where Owen was reassembling his kit.

Ianto bit his tongue to hold back the smirk. He knew what was coming.

"Oi, not what I meant!" Owen exclaimed as Reggie dropped a sloppy wet kiss to Owen's cheek.

Tosh giggled and Jack chuckled and Ianto just shook his head and grinned. Another bloody day at Torchwood.


	2. Chapter 2

By midmorning, their luck had run out. The fog had lifted and the presence of the camera crew had drawn out a crowd, aided by, oddly enough, Owen's presence. Apparently, their doctor had a fair likeness to a current television personality. Ianto never would have guessed.

Gwen had gotten the local police force to set up the barricades quite some distance back from the actual landing site, but it was pretty hard to make a real space ship look fake, even from far away.

"So long as they stay back," Jack had said quietly, "I think we might be able to avoid retconning the masses."

Ianto had nodded as he continued making notes on his PDA, piecing together bits of the translated conversation on his PDA and Tosh's own notes from her three-way exchanges with Jack.

"What've you got?" Jack said coming up along side Ianto after another conversation between their new Zytherian friends and Reggie, who spoke the same language (which Ianto had come to understand was "Galactic Standard").

He looked up briefly and flashed Jack a brief smile. He felt the Captain's broad hand against his back, thumb slipping under the hem of his jumper, caressing soft skin just barely enough to be felt.

"There are a few farms further inland that have been largely abandoned," he reported. "Any number of them would easily house a community of say, fifty people. We'll need to get the land purchased, find out if they can tend a farm at all, to get started. Bank accounts, i.d.s, cover stories, the usual," he finished. "We'll need to get the dorms opened up for somewhere for them to stay in the mean time."

Jack nodded. "We'll have to get Tosh back to the hub to start working on most of that. I'm thinking that Tosh, Owen and I will head back and take Zeph and Telph with us. We can get them settled into the hub while we figure out the details. You and Gwen stay here. Gwen can help with the crowd control, and you'll need to get their transponder out of the ship before you sink it."

Ianto nodded. "Transponder?"

"The remaining ships are to lock onto the transponder signal to know where to land. I figure here's as good as anywhere. Pull the transponder, Tosh has the details for you, and bury it in the ground, here. Zeph and Telph have ways of communicating with their sister ships and can tell them what to do."

"Gwen's-"

"Not going to like that, I know," Jack finished with a sigh. "But I don't want anyone out here on their own, and I need Tosh and Owen back at the hub with me."

"I understand. Let me get this information uploaded for Tosh so you can work out with Zeph and Telph a likely site for them to set up a homestead." Ianto tapped a few things into his PDA, trying to figure out how he was going to remove a real space ship from in front of a crowd of people. He'd have to get creative, which, he supposed, is one of the reasons that Torchwood had headhunted him in the first place.

A loud noise drew his attention up and to the sky. He knew that sound it was –

"Sonic boom. Shit," Jack swore quietly. "Zeph," he called out.

Ianto flipped back to his translation screen.

> I THOUGHT YOU SAID THERE WERE DAYS BEHIND YOU?_  
>   
> 

Ianto looked up and saw Zeph watching the sky.

>   
>  _THEY WERE TO HAVE BEEN CAPTAINHARKNESS__

His long fingered hands fluttered at his sides, and Ianto wondered if it was a nervous gesture.

> _THEY WERE NOT TO PUSH THEIR ENGINES AND ARRIVE A CYCLE BEHIND US_   
>    
> 
> 
> _I DO NOT KNOW WHY THIS IS__

"Alright," Jack slipped back into modern language and rounded up his team. "We've got incoming. Ianto, break out the retcon," he sighed. "We're going to need it. What's the status on UNIT?"

"Should be here any minute, Captain," Ianto reported back. Sally had called and they'd gotten caught up in some kind of snarl that had delayed their arrival.

"Good. Tosh, get back to the SUV and start monitoring their descent. They're going to land right here. Gwen, start working crowd control. See if you can get Reggie's guys to help you out and try to disperse the crowd if possible. Ianto, do we have anything that might help with that?"

"Several smoke and stink bombs in the boot, sir. Should scatter all but the most curious."

"Right. Gwen, get on it. Owen, you'll need to stand by in case they're coming in hot, which may be the case. Reggie!" Jack hollered. Tosh and Gwen started back toward the SUV.

"Captain?" Reggie appeared magically over Jack's shoulder, not an easy feat for a man his size.

"You up for an honorary Torchwood membership? I may need your tongue."

Reggie leered. "Just my tongue?"

Ianto grinned. Reggie was too much like Jack in so many ways.

"Later," Jack promised with a wink.

"No worries, Captain. Always willing to help out where I can. Good guys, those Zythians, at least the ones from my time." Reggie nodded. "My guys can help out – what do you need."

"Ask them to help Gwen get the crowd dispersed. Then tell them to take the rest of the day off – shoot's been cancelled. Hopefully we can avoid retconning them, too."

"Understood." Reggie strode off a few paces and started barking orders to his guys, which set them running through the field back to their vans and cars.

"I'm not prepared for a major medical emergency," Owen said quietly.

"UNIT will have full stores in their mobile command center," Ianto responded, making another note to start checking Owen's field kits. It wouldn't help Owen remember to do it, but it would reduce the chances of them getting out into the field unprepared.

Owen nodded tightly and huddled down into his leather jacket to watch the sky. Ianto's gaze followed after a moment. He tapped his earpiece. "Gwen, get a rush on those crowd cleansers. There's not much time," he said as he watched the clouds overhead begin to glow brightly as if they themselves were catching on fire.

"They're out!" Gwen called back as noise from the crowd began to drift down over the field. Ianto spared a look back to see a thick fog rising up around the perimeter the police had established. "What the hell is in those?"

Ianto and Owen shared a look. "Secret recipe," Ianto replied.

"Their path is erratic," Tosh's voice sounded in his ear. They were all on the same channel now, broadcasting to all. "Jack, I'm not sure if they're going to make it to this location."

"Keep tracking," Jack's voice responded. "As soon as you can get it, let me know where they've landed."

Tosh made an affirmative sounding noise, but nothing else.

"Crowd is mostly clear. Those that didn't run are passed out." Gwen reported. "What do we do with them?"

"Wait for UNIT," Owen spoke up. "They can dole out the retcon if needed and get them home."

"Ianto," Jack called over the comms, waving at him when Ianto looked up from his PDA. He jogged over as Jack continued speaking. "We'll need to get a receiving area set up here. Zeph says they're probably dealing with some kind of emergency to be coming this fast and soon."

"Already working on it, Captain," Ianto replied. "UNIT should have what we need, though it will mean ingratiating ourselves to them at some future point."

"We'll cope," Jack answered with a smile. "Anything from the PM's office?"

"No, sir."

"Oh well. Better to ask forgiveness than –"

Jack was cut off by a squawk from Telph and a bright light emerging through the parting clouds.

"Jack, I've got a lock," Tosh said excitedly. "They're coming in smooth and clear now, and I'm picking up some kind of signal, but I can't interpret it."

"Shunt it to Ianto's PDA," Jack ordered.

"UNIT's arrived," Gwen announced.

"I'm sending Ianto to you," Jack responded, taking the PDA for a moment. "Multiple injured on board," he read quietly. "Attacked while escaping. Need medical attention." Jack looked up. "Go coordinate with UNIT." Their fingers brushed as Jack handed back the PDA, and Ianto wondered if he'd imagined the seemingly lingering caress. "Owen, get your bony ass over here."

Ianto jogged back through the field, thankful for his choice of clothing. His suits provided a measure of armour in his day to day life, but if he was going to spend the day in a semi-muddy field playing go between and coordinating operations, he was glad of the trainers and casual clothes. He reached the UNIT convoy as they came to a stop, uniformed men and women immediately spilling out and setting up.

He was waiting at the lead vehicle when the rear doors opened and he moved to meet Sally. "Morning," he said, offering his hand. It looked like she'd been as rudely awakened as he had, her long blonde hair was pulled back into a messy tail, wisps loose around her face. He figured she'd be just as grateful for her trainers and jeans as he was, instead of her more typical business attire. The hoodie was an interesting choice.

"Ianto, fancy meeting you here." She gazed out and up. "Ah. Something's changed, then?"

"Jack translated a signal for us. It appears that they've got casualties on board sustained during an attack when they tried to leave. Can your people back Owen up on triage if needed?"

Sally nodded, hand going to her own Bluetooth. "Simpson, get the medics down to the field and coordinate with Dr. Harper please. Okay," she turned back to Ianto. "What else do you need?"

"Eventually we'll need help transporting our guests back to the hub," Ianto started, pulling up his notes on the PDA. "For now, medical, and crowd control. We've got adequate retcon, but not enough hands."

'Ianto, you'll want to watch this,' Jack's voice sounded in his ear again. He looked up from Sally's notes to see a larger version of the scout ship break through the cloud cover and slowly descend. Gently, he took hold of Sally's shoulders and guided her in front of him, pointing her in the right direction so she could get a look.

The ship turned slowly, aligning with the scout ship, and settling down into the field with nary a bump from what Ianto could see.

"There are days," Sally said softly, enraptured. "That I really love my job."

Ianto gave her shoulders a gentle squeeze. "I know what you mean." They watched for another moment as Zeph and Telph waved Jack, Reggie and Owen back a pace.

"Okay," Sally said, breaking the thrall they'd fallen into. "Have you heard from the PM's office?"

Ianto shook his head. "I made the call right after I spoke to you this morning and we haven't heard back. Jack's decided to go ahead and do what we can and get it all settled out later."

Sally nodded, jotting notes into a notebook. "You're liaising with us?"

"Yes. Gwen Cooper will be probably be working with me, as well." What Jack had intended for Gwen to do with this new development, he wasn't sure. Sure, she was a great human element to the team, but she didn't have a particular skill that would be useful, unlike Tosh or Owen.

"Ms. Watson?" A young soldier approached. "We've got one of the tents up for you to use."

"Thank you." She reached into the vehicle and withdrew her computer. "Shall we, Mr. Jones?"

Ianto nodded and followed her off to the hastily but securely erected field tent.

**

By early afternoon, Ianto had made sure that Gwen and Tosh each had an hour lie-down in the SUV and that Owen was kept hydrated and fed, since it improved whatever bedside manner he possessed by at least half. Jack and Reggie were making good use of themselves as translators as Owen and the UNIT medics worked to tend the wounded as best they could in the field.

Ianto had set himself up along side Sally, compiling the data that was pouring in from Tosh and Owen in between scouting for suitable pieces of land to purchase and beginning the process of setting up files. He'd grabbed one of the laptops from the SUV and begun assembling databases, mostly filled with nothing more than a number assigned by the triage team and a vague description of injuries. Ianto filled in names as Reggie and Jack managed to get them. The real work would start the next day as interviews began in earnest with each of their visitors, and with each subsequent group that arrived on the remaining three ships.

Ianto only hoped they'd somehow be able to get a message out and ask them to land at night to avoid being seen if possible.

Someone from UNIT had been dispatched to be on coffee and food duty, and Ianto willingly let the position go so he could focus on the eight million other things in front of him. A sandwich lay half eaten to one side of his computer screen, an empty Styrofoam cup and half-full bottle of water to the other. He rapidly tabbed between screens, as Tosh checked in, having taken Gwen with her on the salvage operation. The Zythians had been oddly content to let Torchwood scavenge whatever tech they wanted and easily agreed to having their ships scuttled. Ianto just wasn't sure how he was going to go about having that done.

His eyes were dry and heavy when he reached for the coffee cup, frowning when he found it empty. He set the cup back down and ground the heels of his hands into his eyes, trying to scrub away the weariness and fatigue from staring at the computer for several hours. He needed a break.

Stepping outside, he blinked furiously in the bright afternoon light. When his eyes adjusted Ianto scanned over the horizon, snorting in amusement at UNIT's idea of a good cover for the two alien ships – they had thrown tarps over them.

Owen stumbled past him, making for the SUV. He looked tired and drawn, and Ianto could only assume that the worst of the injured had been tended to, and it was Owen's turn to get a bit of a rest. They'd been on the scene for roughly ten hours after spending much of the previous day tracking down weevils until nearly midnight.

His earpiece sounded in his ear. "Ianto Jones," he answered after tapping it on.

"This is Jane Smith on a secure line from the PM's office."

"Go ahead."

"I have the Prime Minister for you, Mr Jones."

"Thank you." Ianto heard a series of clicks as the call was transferred and he pulled his PDA out of his pocket. The battery indicator showed that he had less than a half-charge on the device, even after switching over to the laptop. He'd need to dig the charger out of the SUV before long.

"Mr Jones, I hear you have some refugees seeking asylum."

"Yes, ma'am," Ianto responded.

"And what is it that Torchwood would like to do with these visitors?"

"We've found some farm land available for purchase that would easily house the population we expect. Captain Harkness has already entered into discussions with the two scouts who arrived earlier this morning and they seem amenable. We are in the process of recovering both the scout vessel and another newly arrived ship carrying wounded."

"Indeed. Well, Torchwood has my authorization to proceed. And please tell Captain Harkness that he owes me dinner next time he is in London."

Ianto smiled. "I will remind him, Prime Minister."

"Thank you, Ianto."

"Anytime, Prime Minister." The call disconnected with a click.

Ianto gazed around for another moment, locating Jack and Reggie among the wounded. Two young men in uniforms were shadowing them, presumably taking down notes as Jack and Reggie spoke to each one of the fifteen Zythians spread out on the field. Ianto felt a strong desire to be down there, not only because he didn't trust anyone's notes but his own, but because he wasn't close enough to Jack to keep an eye on him.

He gathered that feeling up and locked it down tight. It wasn't professional – they had a job to do, and his was to keep everything running as best he could while Jack did his job – that hero thing he was so good at, Ianto reflected with a slight grin as he ducked back into the tent. His computer was where he left it, the empty cup and half-drank bottle of water replaced by an unopened energy drink and full bottle of water. His sandwich still sat there, taunting him.

'Ianto?' Jack's voice was hoarse and tired.

"Captain."

'Owen got everyone stabilized. We're going to get a couple of the UNIT vans to take all of the Zythians, Owen, Tosh, and me back to the hub. You can bring Gwen back with you in the SUV when you get everything wrapped up.'

"Yes, sir." Ianto tabbed to a new screen and started typing. "Did Tosh get everything salvaged?"

'Everything she could. What do you have in mind for disposal?'

Ianto frowned. "Sinking them would be easiest, but I don't know about actually getting them to the water, sir. I may be forced to get creative."

Jack laughed in his ear, making him smile. 'God save us all from that. Did the PM's office ever get back to you?'

"Yes, sir," Ianto answered. "Harriet says to remind you that you owe her a dinner next time you're in town."

'I do. I'd forgotten.' Jack laughed again. 'What did you have to promise her for this one?'

"I don't know what you mean, sir." Ianto said, deadpan. He was, indirectly, the reason the Captain owed the Prime Minister dinner. Something having to do with the Torchwood budget, if he remembered correctly.

'Ianto –'

"Nothing, sir. She gave her permission to proceed."

'Fantastic.' There was a click in his ear and Jack's voice came back. 'Have you actually eaten anything today?'

Jack had switched them over to a private channel then. "Yes," Ianto answered simply, though he knew that Jack wouldn't consider the half sandwich and the power bar at all adequate. "Have you?" Ianto turned it back on Jack. He thought it seemed rather silly that he'd been complaining of not getting a proper meal in days just twelve hours ago, but the fact was he simply hadn't noticed that he'd been hungry.

'Yes,' Jack responded. 'There's been a very attractive young Sergeant down here seeing to my every need,' Jack's voice was teasing. 'Well, almost every need.'

Ianto couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"Careful," Jack said just behind him. "Your face will freeze that way."

"How did – never mind," Ianto shook his head and toggled off his earpiece. "Thought you were leaving?" He switched screens again.

"I am. Hi Sally, I'm going to steal Ianto away for a few minutes," Jack bent and kissed Sally on the cheek.

"Captain Harkness," she replied with a smile and nod, continuing to compile the data from her own team.

"Come on," Jack said, reaching for Ianto's elbow and tugging gently.

Ianto rose from his seat and followed Jack out of the tent and around the back, out of the way and out of sight. He went easily when Jack tugged him forward and kissed him gently, deeply, pressing as much of their bodies together as possible.

They pulled apart slightly, just enough so they could breathe, one of Jack's hands on Ianto's back, the other at his neck, holding him in place. Ianto's hands had found their way to Jack's hips to hold himself steady.

"I'm leaving Gwen with you so she can get some experience working with UNIT," Jack said softly. The hand at Ianto's neck caressed the stubble on his jaw before sliding down his chest and moving into Jack's pocket. "Here," the Captain said, handing over a small memory card. "I recorded all the conversations Reggie and I had, since I know you're not going to trust the transcripts from the UNIT guys. The translation programme on your PDA should work just like it would if we were speaking."

"I'll take a look at it later," Ianto said, slipping it into a back pocket of his jeans. "I've sent everything I've done so far back to the central computer at the hub, so Tosh should be able to start working on some of the analysis. I'll keep working on the cover stories, i.d.s and such from here while I try to figure out what to do with those ships. I may need a pilot and a cloak device."

"Okay." Jack kissed him again. "Phone if you need us to come back for anything. And eat something, please, you're starting to grey out a little bit." Jack's thumb ran over his jaw again. "It's not a good shade on you."

Ianto smiled. "I will. There should be fresh linens for the dormitory beds in the closet at the end of the hallway on the first level of rooms. Oh, and someone should feed the weevils and Myfanwy."

"Okay," Jack said again.

"Jack!" Tosh called out.

"You'd better go, Jack," Ianto said, pushing away slightly. "We're on good terms with UNIT this week – let's not change that," he teased.

Jack grinned. "See you back at the hub." He spun on his heel, sending his coat tails billowing out like a cape as he strode away.

Ianto took a breath and let it out slowly, feeling the multiple days worth of weariness pulling at him, forcing himself to keep his shoulders back and head up. After a moment, the vehicles pulled away and he went back inside the tent, Sally watching him curiously for a moment. He finished his sandwich and drank the sugary energy drink and got back to work trying to figure out how they were going to hide the ships, get a homestead for fifty aliens started, whether or not they could even eat human food or grow their own.

**

By early evening, Ianto had been chivvied into a nap by the tag team of Gwen and Sally (and he made a note to never get them together again), which had at least succeeded in getting his thoughts to stop chasing themselves in circles as he tried to solve the most immediate problem, which was getting rid of the tarp-draped alien vessels sitting in a field outside Splott.

Ianto sat in the SUV putting together the final details of the ship cover up. It had turned out to be remarkably simple. Each of the ships had the capability of accepting a remote command, so Ianto and Tosh had spent the late afternoon hours configuring the SUV's computer system to correspond with the Zythian ships so that Ianto could essentially set coordinates and let the auto-pilot do the work. He and Gwen were just waiting for full dark to get the ships set on their way to the bottom of the North Sea.

UNIT had largely pulled out a few hours earlier, deciding that Torchwood had the matter well in hand, and that they'd be able to take care of the impending three ships on their own, since they knew what would be needed. Ianto had sat in on that call between Jack and Sally's boss, and thankfully it had gone smoothly on both sides.

Ianto decided it had gotten dark enough and moved to rouse Gwen, who was curled up in the front seat, sleeping lightly. The coordinates were pre-programmed, but he was going to need her help to pull off the tarps and clear the remaining UNIT troops from the area.

"Gwen," he shook her shoulder lightly. "Wake up."

"Ngh." She sat up slightly and ran her hand over her face. "Is it time?"

"Close enough," Ianto said.

She slid out of the vehicle and followed Ianto down to the tarp-draped ships. The fog had returned when the sun had disappeared, providing them once again with a bit of cover. The few remaining UNIT soldiers let them past the barricades and they set to removing the tarps and feeding the codes into the computers.

With Tosh's help, Ianto had uncovered the transponder from the scout ship and buried it a few vacant lots over, somewhere less accessible to foot traffic which would hopefully help them avoid any more onlookers if they weren't able to contact the remaining incoming vessels to request them to land at night.

Ianto toggled on his earpiece. "Tosh?" He and Gwen walked back to the SUV after warning the UNIT soldiers.

'Hi, Ianto.'

"We're ready on this end."

'Okay.' Ianto heard typing. 'Tracking is ready.'

"Here we go," he said quietly. He entered the commands into the SUV's computers and watched as engines fired up and the scout ship lifted. A beat later, he repeated the procedure and watched the transport ship follow. Gwen stood up against the side of the vehicle and watched as Ianto shifted his attention back and forth between the departing vessels and the tracking data Tosh was feeding him from the hub.

'Looks good,' Tosh said quietly. 'They should be making touchdown in just a few moments.'

'Ianto,' Jack's voice came through. 'Go ahead and pack it in. We can continue to monitor from here.'

"Yes, sir. Do we need to make any stops on our way back?"

'No. Just get back to the hub.'

"Understood. We're on our way." Ianto broke the connection and moved into the driver's seat. Gwen was already strapped in and dozing in the passenger seat. The last two UNIT vehicles proceeded them onto the road, and then Ianto was speeding back to Cardiff.

They made good time to the city, the radio playing softly to keep Ianto awake. Half way back, after catching himself drifting off at the wheel a second time, he pulled off as soon as he found someplace to grab a coffee. Gwen never stirred and Ianto bit down on a wave of envy. He really had no right to be envious – even though he had no real idea of what Gwen had done all day other than prattle around after Tosh, and she'd gone home hours before any of the others the night before (she was still trying to work things out with Rhys and Jack was still trying to make her keep her life outside Torchwood). Really, he couldn't begrudge her the hour or so of sleep she'd get as he drove back to Cardiff.

Besides, if Jack had been driving, he'd probably be passed out, too. Weariness sucked at him, more so than usual when he battled weeks of insomnia. What he felt was more than just not sleeping, it was a bone deep exhaustion of too many days trying to do too much without enough rest. Jack tried to make sure he slept at least a little bit every night (and Ianto fought not to blush as some of those techniques flashed through his mind), but the rift was unpredictable and unstable, and Ianto was finding himself out in the field with the others more often, even just for weevil calls.

No one had questioned his presence in the field, just as no one had questioned his almost constant presence at the hub. He was considering just moving out of his flat, but he found it useful to have somewhere to go when the hub started to be too much, or he needed some time alone, or just needed to see the sunlight. So even though he only spent a part of one day a week there to do his wash (and Jack's if he was feeling gracious), he couldn't yet give up the notion of a bolt-hole.

He was startled out of his musings as he pulled into the garage and Gwen's mobile sounded. She woke with a start, fumbling for her phone as Ianto parked and turned off the engine, getting out of the vehicle to give her some semblance of privacy.

As he stepped out of the lift into the hub, the alarms sounded again.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," Owen grunted from the couch behind Tosh's station, where she and Jack were gathered.

"It's another Zythian ship," Tosh said.

"Owen, go get Zeph, Tosh work with Zeph and find out if they need emergency assistance. Ianto –"

"Coffee, sir."

"Yes, but where's Gwen?"

"Rhys phoned," Ianto said by way of explanation as he headed for the stairs to the kitchen. Someone really needed to explain the concept of a day to the Zythians. But again, Ianto thought as he set about starting a pot of coffee and sorting out something for the team to eat, it was just another day at Torchwood.


End file.
